The Exhibition - The Crown / Coma

We certainly didn’t see this coming. The Exhibition’s demo EP showed some promise but was overall quite derivative and displayed a band that appeared to be in thrall to their influences, unable to cast off the shackles of mere imitation.

How relieved we were then to hear that on their first single proper, a double A-side of ‘The Crown’ and ‘Coma’, they sound like a completely different band: themselves. It would seem the quartet have finally found their voice, and it’s done wonders for them.

A refreshing sort of sparseness informs the lead track, an unsettling backdrop of mutes and restrained drumming forming behind the vocalist’s voice, which has a real Matt Berninger tinge to it. The song soon kicks into gear, switching to bombast as guitars take centre stage and it explodes into something, say, Muse or Editors wouldn’t shy away from.

‘Coma’, meanwhile, is unashamedly progressive, a startling indicator of how far the group have come in such a short while. Its awkward 5/4 time signature fits the track perfectly, the watertight rhythm section driving it. It seems quite comfortable taking its time - three minutes pass before we get to anything even remotely resembling a chorus… which makes it all the sweeter when it arrives.

It could well be that The Exhibition are indeed ‘still at war’ with themselves. They haven’t yet pinned down their ideal sound, but then again, Rome wasn’t built in a day. The true, erm, exhibition of their talents is still to come - and this we look forward to eagerly.